Prometheus Unleashed: Bioethics, Environmental Responsibility and the Cosmic Imperative in Outer Space

Arthur Saniotis; Piper Hutson

doi:10.21697/seb.5897

Published: 2026-07-22

Prometheus Unleashed: Bioethics, Environmental Responsibility and the Cosmic Imperative in Outer Space

Arthur Saniotis

, Piper Hutson

Studia Ecologiae et Bioethicae

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.21697/seb.5897

Abstract

It has only been since the 1960s that humans have possessed the technology to venture beyond the earth. Over the succeeding decades, our knowledge of space and how humans respond to its adverse conditions has significantly increased. To date, over 700 astronauts have entered space in countless space missions, a remarkable achievement given the severe space environment and its inherent dangers. Given the adverse nature of human activities since the advent of the Neolithic period (circa 10,000 BCE), which have been marked by significant biodiversity loss, terrestrial degradation, and periodic crises mainly due to maladaptive socio-political-ideological systems, will our current zeitgeist be transported to future non-terrestrial settlements? Otherwise, will our future descendants manage to develop new kinds of ethical systems which privilege communion with the cosmos? Consequently, this paper argues for the necessity of future space colonists to develop an “ethically based cosmic imperative” for thriving in extra-terrestrial habitats. I define this ethical cosmic imperative as a human need for creating ethical systems/ideologies in response to the unique environmental and social conditions space colonists will experience. This argument supports recent developments in space governance and environmental ethics, which highlight the need for normative frameworks for reducing the possibility of political and ecological failures in extraterrestrial environments (Anker 2005; Billings 2006; Marino and Cheney 2023). However, this is a difficult task considering that humans have yet to colonise space.

Keywords:

space ethics, bioethics, environmental ethics, space governance, space colonization, orbital debris, genetic engineering, extraterrestrial environments, extraterrestrial stewardship, human-nature relations, SDG 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production

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Saniotis, A., & Hutson, P. (2026). Prometheus Unleashed: Bioethics, Environmental Responsibility and the Cosmic Imperative in Outer Space. Studia Ecologiae Et Bioethicae. https://doi.org/10.21697/seb.5897

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